Broken Arm? Women RecoverSlower than Men

Women are four times more likely than men to experience a broken forearm and require a cast. To examine whether the effects of casting were similar between the sexes, Ohio University researchers examined immobilized volunteers for a period of three weeks.

The researchers determined that while men were able to regain 99 percent of their strength within a week of removing the cast, women's strength was still 30 percent lower when compared to before the cast was applied.

The difference is tied to sex-specific hormones that help regulate muscle growth.